Notes on AI, automation, LLMs, and building backend systems.https://aadan.app/https://aadan.app/blog/how-to-academic-writing/https://aadan.app/blog/how-to-academic-writing/A practical guide to academic writing — constructing a thesis, structuring an argument, maintaining a formal register, and revising for clarity and precision.Wed, 01 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMTwritingacademichow-tohttps://aadan.app/blog/how-to-build-a-site-with-astro/https://aadan.app/blog/how-to-build-a-site-with-astro/A step-by-step introduction to Astro — installing the framework, understanding its structure, creating pages and content collections, and deploying a fast, static site.Tue, 30 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTastroweb developmenthow-toguidehttps://aadan.app/blog/how-to-automate-with-make/https://aadan.app/blog/how-to-automate-with-make/An introduction to Make (formerly Integromat) — how scenarios, modules, triggers, and routers work, and how to build a reliable automation without writing code.Mon, 29 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTmakeautomationno-codehow-tohttps://aadan.app/blog/how-to-build-your-first-n8n-workflow/https://aadan.app/blog/how-to-build-your-first-n8n-workflow/A structured introduction to n8n — nodes, triggers, connections, and expressions — with guidance on error handling and the choice between self-hosting and the cloud.Sun, 28 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTn8nautomationhow-toguidehttps://aadan.app/blog/how-to-write-posts-markdown-guide/https://aadan.app/blog/how-to-write-posts-markdown-guide/Every formatting feature you can use in a blog post here — headings, lists, links, images, code, tables, and more — with the exact syntax and how it renders.Sat, 27 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTwritingmarkdownguidehttps://aadan.app/blog/llms-are-rewiring-business-automation/https://aadan.app/blog/llms-are-rewiring-business-automation/Large language models have moved from answering questions to making decisions inside automated workflows. This article examines what is changing in business automation and why.Thu, 25 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTAIautomationLLMsn8ntrendshttps://aadan.app/blog/structured-outputs-llm-apps/https://aadan.app/blog/structured-outputs-llm-apps/The distinction between an unreliable AI demonstration and a dependable system is rarely the model itself, but whether it is required to return structured data that programs can act upon.Tue, 23 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTAILLMsengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/offline-first-is-a-feature/https://aadan.app/blog/offline-first-is-a-feature/Building applications that function without a network connection appears to be additional work. In practice, it imposes the architecture that makes software fast, resilient, and trustworthy.Sat, 20 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTmobileFlutterengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/what-is-rss/https://aadan.app/blog/what-is-rss/RSS lets you follow blogs directly, without algorithms or email. This article explains what RSS is, why it endures, and how to subscribe to a feed — including this one.Tue, 16 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTRSSwebwritinghttps://aadan.app/blog/documenting-a-codebase/https://aadan.app/blog/documenting-a-codebase/A practical guide to documenting a codebase for maintainability: layer your docs, write a useful README, explain the why in code, and keep documentation current.Sun, 14 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringwritingdocumentationhttps://aadan.app/blog/technical-writing-for-engineers/https://aadan.app/blog/technical-writing-for-engineers/Principles of technical writing for engineers: prefer clarity over cleverness, write for your reader, use plain words and short sentences, and revise ruthlessly.Tue, 02 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMTwritingengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/developer-portfolio-interviews/https://aadan.app/blog/developer-portfolio-interviews/How to write a developer portfolio that earns interviews: lead with outcomes, describe projects with audience-aware clarity, and demonstrate engineering judgment.Fri, 22 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTcareerwritinghttps://aadan.app/blog/offline-first-stable-ids/https://aadan.app/blog/offline-first-stable-ids/An explanation of why offline-first and local-first apps must assign stable, client-generated identifiers, and how doing so prevents duplicates and merge conflicts.Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTmobileFlutterengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/conflict-resolution-sync/https://aadan.app/blog/conflict-resolution-sync/A precise survey of conflict-resolution strategies for local-first sync, comparing last-write-wins, operational transforms, and CRDTs for offline apps.Sat, 02 May 2026 00:00:00 GMTmobileengineeringFlutterhttps://aadan.app/blog/core-web-vitals/https://aadan.app/blog/core-web-vitals/A practical introduction to Core Web Vitals — LCP, INP, and CLS — explaining what each metric measures, why it matters for SEO, and how to improve it.Thu, 16 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTweb developmentSEOperformancehttps://aadan.app/blog/human-in-the-loop/https://aadan.app/blog/human-in-the-loop/A practical guide to inserting human approval into automated and AI-driven workflows: where to place gates, how to pause execution, and how to fail safely.Sun, 12 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTautomationAIengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/intro-to-serverless/https://aadan.app/blog/intro-to-serverless/What serverless functions are, how invocation and cold starts work, where they fit, and the constraints around state and execution time you must design around.Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTweb developmentengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/self-hosting-n8n/https://aadan.app/blog/self-hosting-n8n/An examination of the trade-offs in self-hosting n8n: the control and data ownership you gain against the operational responsibilities you assume.Thu, 02 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMTn8nautomationself-hostinghttps://aadan.app/blog/static-vs-servers/https://aadan.app/blog/static-vs-servers/A decision guide for choosing between static generation, server rendering, and on-demand functions, with practical guidance from Astro and Vercel deployments.Thu, 26 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTweb developmentengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/n8n-make-zapier/https://aadan.app/blog/n8n-make-zapier/A pragmatic comparison of n8n, Make, and Zapier across control, complexity, cost, and hosting, with guidance on matching each platform to the right use case.Sun, 22 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTautomationn8nmakehttps://aadan.app/blog/centralized-error-handler/https://aadan.app/blog/centralized-error-handler/A practical guide to designing a single, reusable error-handling workflow that captures failures across every automation, alerts the right people, and aids recovery.Sun, 15 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTautomationn8nreliabilityhttps://aadan.app/blog/caching-basics/https://aadan.app/blog/caching-basics/A foundational guide to caching: where caches live, how HTTP caching works with Cache-Control and ETags, invalidation strategies, and common pitfalls.Tue, 10 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTbackendperformanceengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/function-calling-intro/https://aadan.app/blog/function-calling-intro/An engineer's introduction to function calling: how language models invoke external tools through structured schemas, and how to design the loop safely.Wed, 04 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMTAILLMsengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/repository-service-pattern/https://aadan.app/blog/repository-service-pattern/A practical guide to the repository-service pattern in Laravel: how repositories isolate data access, services hold business logic, and why the split pays off.Thu, 26 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTbackendarchitecturelaravelhttps://aadan.app/blog/when-not-to-use-an-llm/https://aadan.app/blog/when-not-to-use-an-llm/A practical decision framework for backend engineers on when a large language model is the wrong tool, and which deterministic alternatives to reach for instead.Fri, 20 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTAILLMsengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/rate-limiting-and-backoff/https://aadan.app/blog/rate-limiting-and-backoff/How to respect API rate limits using HTTP status signals, exponential backoff with jitter, and queue-based throttling in automation tools such as n8n.Sun, 15 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringAPIsautomationhttps://aadan.app/blog/ai-agents-vs-workflows/https://aadan.app/blog/ai-agents-vs-workflows/A decision framework for choosing between deterministic workflows and autonomous AI agents, weighing predictability, cost, and the nature of the task.Mon, 09 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTAIautomationagentshttps://aadan.app/blog/database-indexing/https://aadan.app/blog/database-indexing/A clear introduction to database indexes for application developers: what an index is, when it helps, what it costs, and how to choose useful indexes.Fri, 06 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTbackenddatabaseshttps://aadan.app/blog/idempotency-explained/https://aadan.app/blog/idempotency-explained/An explanation of idempotency for automation engineers: why retries are inevitable, how HTTP methods classify it, and concrete patterns for safe-to-repeat operations.Mon, 02 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringautomationreliabilityhttps://aadan.app/blog/what-is-rag/https://aadan.app/blog/what-is-rag/An overview of retrieval-augmented generation: how it grounds language models in your own documents, when to use it, and the components of a working pipeline.Mon, 26 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTAILLMsRAGhttps://aadan.app/blog/env-vars-and-secrets/https://aadan.app/blog/env-vars-and-secrets/Why configuration belongs in the environment, how environment variables separate config from code, and the practices that keep secrets out of source control.Thu, 22 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTengineeringsecurityhttps://aadan.app/blog/webhooks-explained/https://aadan.app/blog/webhooks-explained/A clear, technical explanation of how webhooks work, how they differ from polling, and the practices that make them reliable in production automation systems.Sun, 18 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTautomationwebhooksengineeringhttps://aadan.app/blog/prompt-engineering-fundamentals/https://aadan.app/blog/prompt-engineering-fundamentals/A practical guide to writing prompts that produce consistent, machine-parseable output for production automations, covering structure, examples, and constraints.Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTAILLMsautomationhttps://aadan.app/blog/rest-api-design/https://aadan.app/blog/rest-api-design/A grounded look at REST API design principles that endure: resource modeling, correct HTTP method and status code use, statelessness, and stable contracts.Thu, 08 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMTbackendAPIsengineering